Birthday girl and interview

Brenna Caroline turned 8 on Saturday.  8 is a big birthday in our house.  8 means you can have a friend sleep over.  8 means (if you are a girl) you can have your ears pierced.  Over the years, she has had friends get their ears pierced.  We told her when she was around 2 years old that she had to wait until she was 8.  So each year she would say, "I am 4 today and now I only have 4 more years until I get my ears pierced."  The day finally came and honestly I was a bit worried that she would back out.  We had a lovely lunch out with family and two of her friends and then off to Sweet and Sassy for the big event.  After the first ear she looked up at me and said, "Ouch, that really hurt."  The lady at the store quickly went to the other side and moved before she had time to think about it.  Bren was so brave and after a little crying in the pillow they gave her to hold, she stood up and never complained.  This itty bitty baby in this picture that would fit in her daddy's hand is not so little anymore.  She is really turning into a beautiful young lady, inside and out!  I had to throw in some of my favorite pictures over the last 8 years.  Enjoy!

As I have been doing with all 3 kids since they were little, I interview them.  Some years are easier than others.  This year she sits over my shoulder as I type this. 

Here is last years interview.  I always love to see how they compare from year to year.

Mom (M)- What is your favorite color?

Brenna (B)-My favorite color is light purple.

M-What is your favorite food?

B-Food?  Mac and cheese  (this has never changed)

M-What is your favorite song?

B-Any of the Taylor Swift songs.  I don't know what they are called.

M-What do you want to do when your are mommy's age?

B-Be a dentist.  (This is a new thing, ever since her last check up.)

M-Why?

B-I don't know..cause the make money. 

M-What is your favorite activity to do in school?

B-Math (She is totally right...this girl can whip out a math problem and know that answer without writing it down.  She did not get that from me!)

M-Why?

B-It is hard to explain.  (That is why she does not like language arts and reading, because she has to explain her answers or expand.  Math is just right or wrong.)

M-What is least favorite thing to do in school?

B-Reading.

M-Who is your best friend?

B-Hannah.

M-What do you love about your brother?

B-When he is hurt or not feeling well, he lets me hug him.  (She is my nurturer!)

M-What about your sister?  What do you love about your sister?

B-When she plays with me nicely.

M-What makes you happy?

B-When my brother and sister make me laugh.

M-What makes you sad?

B-When my brother and sister make me mad.

M-How do they make you mad?

B-When Aidan wants to play with us and he messes stuff up and then when Carsyn plays with Aidan and not me.  (I guess this is what happens when you are a middle child.)

M-What do you love about your daddy?

B-He makes me laugh.

M-What is your favorite restaurant?

B-Chick fil a

M-What do you not like to do?

B-Play football outside with Aidan.  (He is getting pretty big, not sure if I would play that either.  He is pretty tough.)

M-If you could be a dog or cat, what would you be and why?

B-A dog because they are so sweet and cats are so lazy.

M-What do you look forward to most about being 8?

B-I don't have to ride in a carseat anymore.

M-If you could go anywhere any in the world, where would it be?

B-Disney World

M-Are you going to get married some day and have kids?

B-Probably yes and 3 kids.

M-What is one of your favorite memories from this past year?

B-Traveling around the country.  (I think that was all of our favorite memory.)

October Meal Plan

Fall is here and hopeful some cooler temps.  Leaves are falling from my trees, but the colors are not changing that much.  I am blaming all the rain we got this year.  Football is in full swing at our house and the girls gymnastics competitive season starts in 1 month.  We are as busy as ever and loving every minute of it!  Our sweet Bren turns 8 this month.  How can that be?  More on the birthday girl later.  For now, here is the October meal plan....(remember if no links provided, check for recipe below)
Tues 1st  leftovers
Wed 2nd  Sloppy joes
Thur 3rd  chicken and dumpling casserole
Fri 4th  Pizza
Sat 5th  Mac and Cheese (Brad and I have a wedding to attend)
Sun 6th  Turkey burgers
Mon 7th  Beef stroganoff
Tues 8th Poppy seed chicken
Wed 9th  BLT'S
Thur 10th  Baked slow cooker chicken
Fri 11th  Pizza
Sat 12th  Broccoli cheese soup
Sun 13th Ranch cheddar chicken
Mon 14th  Savory chicken tacos
Tues 15th  slow cooker honey BBQ chicken sandwiches
Wed 16th  strawberry french toast
Thur 17th  chicken chili
Fri 18th  Pizza
Sat 19th Out to Eat-Brenna Caroline's 8th Birthday
Sun 20th  Rosemary ranch chicken kabobs
Mon 21st  Spaghetti and meatsauce
Tues 22nd  crockpot cheesy chicken spaghetti
Wed 23rd  Beef tacos
Thur 24th  slow cooker ceamy chicken soup
Fri 25th  Pizza
Sat 26th  BBQ ribs
Sun 27th Grilled porkchops
Mon 28th  Grilled ham and cheese
Tues 29th  slow cooker chicken potpie stew
Wed 30th  Quesadillas
Thurs 31st  Chicken wings and treats for Halloween

Beef Stroganoff by Joy Belt

1lbs ground beef
1 medium onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
1 can beef broth
1/2 cup water
3 cups uncooked noodles (I use egg noodles)
In skillet brown beef and cook onion until tender. Drain and blend all ingredients into pan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 10 min or until noodles are done. Stir often

Savory chicken tacos

1 Rotisserie chicken deboned and shredded
12 oz steamable white or brown rice uncooked
1 cup shredded quesadilla cheese
1 can fire roasted tomatoes
1 cup sweet corn
1 jar enchilada sauce
taco shells
sour cream optional
Preheat oven to 450 degrees and spray a 13X9 baking dish. Mix all ingredients together except for taco shells into a large bowl and spread into baking dish. Bake at 450 for 20 minutes or until bubbling. Spoon into taco shells and serve with sour cream

Chicken chili

1 Rotisserie chicken
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 can rotel tomatoes
1 pkg chili seasoning
A little bit of water if it is too thick
(whatever beans you like, for example...
1 can pinto beans
1 can navy beans
1 can chili beans
1 can black beans
I shred the chicken and put all the ingredients in crockpot for about 4 hours.
Rosemary Ranch Chicken Kabobs

1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup ranch dressing
3 Tbls Worcestershire sauce
1 tbls minced fresh rosemary
2 tsp salt
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp white vinegar
1/ tsp black pepper
1 Tbls white sugar optional
5 boneless skinless chicken cubed into 1 inch pieces
Combine all into a bowl and place chicken into marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 30 min to 1 hour. Preheat grill. Put chicken on skewers and discard marinade. Lightly oil grate and grill skewers for 8-12 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.

Ranch cheddar chicken from slice of Forsyth cookbook

1/2 c original ranch dressing
1 T flour
4 chicken breast, boneless, skinless
1/4 c shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 c grated parm cheese
Preheat oven to 375. Mix together dressing and flour. Coat each chicken breast with mixture. Arrange on a baking sheet. Combine both cheeses and sprinkle over chicken breasts. Bake 25 minutes.

Broccoli cheese soup

4 c chicken broth
1 c water
1 c half and half
4-6 slices cheddar singles
1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c finely diced onion
1/4 tsp ground pepper
4 c broccoli florets-bite sized
Garnish with cheddar cheese and parsley
Combine chicken broth, water, half and half, cheese, flour onion and pepper in a large sauce pan. I use a pot because I double this recipe. Although this will feed a family of 5 comfortably. My family just loves left overs. Whisk to combine and break up any lumps of flour, then turn to medium/high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low. Add broccoli to soup and simmer for 15-20 min until broccoli is tender but not soft. Serve with garnish

September Meals

After a long weekend off with a nice break at my parents, I am getting this up a couple days late.  I am going to continue daily/weekly themes.  It is just easier to plan this way.  For example, Fridays are pizza day, Wednesdays are sandwich days, Mondays are Italian day and Tues/Thur are crockpot days.  You can make your days your own themes.  It is easier to look at a months calender and plan your weeks out.  Hoping September brings drier, cooler weather.  In our 4th week of school, we are in the swing of our school schedule.  Kids are loving their classes and teachers.  Best of luck to all who are returning to school this week!
Sun 1st-SC
Mon 2nd-SC
Tues 3rd-chicken salad
Wed 4th-sloppy joes
Thur 5th-baked crockpot chicken
Fri 6th-Pizza
Sat 7th-Hamburgers
Sun 8th-bacon wrapped filet
Mon 9th-chicken spaghetti
Tues 10th-pot roast
Wed 11th-BLT's
Thur 12th-crockpot beef fajitas
Fri 13th-Pizza
Sat 14th-BBQ ribs
Sun 15th-chicken and noodles
Mon 16th-spaghetti and meatsauce
Tues 17th-crockpot ranch porkchops
Wed 18th-crispy steak sandwich
Thur 19th-crockpot chicken tetrazzini
Fri 20th-Pizza
Sat 21st-bratts
Sun 22nd-chicken potpie
Mon 23rd-chicken parmigiana
Tues 24th-crockpot beef and mushrooms
Wed 25th-ranch chicken sandwich
Thur 26th-crockpot chicken taco soup
Fri 27th-Pizza
Sat 28th-pork loin
Sun 29th-BBQ chicken wings
Mon 30th-fettuccine alfredo (add chicken)

August Meals

It's back to school time in the Kudlas house.  Brad started back up to school on Thursday.  We sent the kids to South Carolina for 4 days for some time with Papa and Grammie for their last little summer break.  Brad and I were able to have a nice date night and then a day to work around the house.  The 8th is the big day.  I will have all my kiddos in the same school. (Only 2 years and then Aidan is off to middle school.)  I am excited and they are even more excited to have little sister finally there.  We are thrilled with the teachers they have and are so grateful to be in such a wonderful school system!  So, with football in full swing as well as Brad's cross country team and the girls at the gym, we jump right into this week with our "normal" Kudlas schedule.
Lots of new recipes this month.  I am a bit obsessed with Ree Drummond- aka The Pioneer Woman.  You can watch her at 5 pm on the Food Network or check our her blog here.  She has practical recipes that are inexpensive, simple and fast.  You have to check out her show.  Lots of her recipes are below.  Just click on the links. 
Thur 1st-We did a back to school surprise treat for Brad
Fri 2nd-Pizza (Yes, pizza night continues in our house..every Friday night..even when the kids are gone!)
Sat 3rd-Date night (Kids in SC)
Sun 4th-Chinese (Kids in SC)
Mon 5th-Crispy cheddar chicken (kids come home)
Tues 6th-slow cooker creamy chicken noodle soup
Wed 7th-chicken tacos (I used a rotisserie chicken, taco seasoning, soft and hard shell tacos and any fixings you want)
Thurs 8th-sloppy joes
Fri 9th-Pizza
Sat 10th-Grilled chicken
Sun 11th-Grilled porkloin
Mon 12th-Ritz cracker chicken
Tues 13th-Slow cooker beef and mushrooms
Wed 14th-fancy mac and cheese
Thurs 15th-BLT's
Fri 16th-Pizza
Sat 17th- Grilled Hamburgers
Sun 18th-Grilled BBQ Ribs (our 12th anniversary!)
Mon 19th-chicken spaghetti
Tues 20th-spicy pop pulled pork
Wed 21st-simple perfect enchiladas
Thurs 22nd-ranch chicken sandwiches
Fri 23rd-Pizza
Sat 24th-spicy roasted chicken legs
Sun 25th-bacon wrapped fillet
Mon 26th-Roast chicken
Tues 27th-slow cooker ranch porkchops
Wed 28th-strawberry stuffed french toast (my own recipe..message me if you want it)
Thurs 29th-Crispy steak sandwiches
Fri 30th-Pizza
Sat 31st-

Day 21-Final day!

Happy 4th of July!  What an amazing day to be spending at one of our National Monuments. 

We packed up the car for the last time this morning and checked out of our hotel pretty early.  Brad has gotten pretty efficient at packing the car.  There seems to be more room even though we have accumulated more items along the way.  We have less food, but more clothes and souvenirs to bring home.  It was just a short drive from our hotel into downtown St. Louis.  We didn't know when we got there about all the cool activities going on during the day.  

The kids in front of the arch.   

Riding the "pod" that only fits 5 people up inside the arch to the top.  I go crazy about closed in spaces like this.  I look happy, but inside I was freaking out!

Once at the top, I didn't have a problem with the heights, just the closed in space up there.  It is not big and the windows are not large.  Beautiful views, but not a happy momma!

There was a parade going on downtown.

The shadow of the arch.  So cool.

See the small windows and short ceilings.  Yeah, I didn't like that much.  I would rather be standing on the edge of a large platform with nothing around me than with everything closing in on me. 

View of the stadium.

Once we got down and large crowd had formed in the park.  There were concerts going on and an airshow that was about to start.  The kids had never seen anything like this.  I grew up going to and watching air shows.  I just loved that we got to see this!

Down by the Mississippi.

We left shortly after lunch to drive to Nashville to watch fire works.  However, the rain that has insisted on staying around much of the southeast this summer had invaded Nashville.  We took a vote and the kids voted to just keep driving the rest of the 4 hours it took to get home instead of hanging out in the rain waiting for fireworks.  We pulled in our driveway around 1 am. 

I am so grateful that we took this trip.  I will never forget the places we saw, the cool people we met and all the experiences we got to do as a family.  I have gotten a few questions like, would you do it all the same if you got to do it again?  Yes, I would plan it the same way and the only thing I would do differently, is be gone for a 4th week and gone into Montana and Canada.  I look forward to planning a trip similar in a couple years to go up the East Coast of the US.

What an adventure! 

Day 20

On the agenda for today...riding in the car.  Then, riding in the car some more.  Last night we did our best to get everything set for the morning.  We knew we would be waking up before the sun rose, so we had to get most of the things packed and clothes laid out.  The kids and I went and got dressed while Brad packed up camp.  We were out of camp and on the road before 6 am.  Brad and I would do 3 hour shifts throughout the day.  We drove all the way through South Dakota, into the tip of Nebraska, Iowa, the tip of Kansas, across Missouri, into St. Louis and finally into Illinois where our hotel was.  990 miles today and we gained another hour.  No pictures today, except for this cute little video clip of the girls singing Taylor Swift songs in the car.  (Sorry, too long to put up on the blog)  The kids did fantastic today.  After leaving the west part of South Dakota, the drive was so boring, but they came up with lots of games, finished their journals and slept quite a bit.  I know this may sound crazy, but they do better on the longer legs of the trip.  I think they just understand that it is going to be sun up to sun down in the car and that's the way it is going to be.  On our 3-5 hour trips they are so eager to get where we are going.  Today the view was simply from inside the car.  Did they sometimes start to drive me crazy.  Absolutely, but it was so worth every minute! 

Day 19

What a fun day we had planned hanging around camp.  Brad took Carsyn hiking in the caves and caverns that surround Mount Rushmore.  They got an early start while the other two kiddos and I slept in a bit.  Around noon we went on an 1 1/2 trail ride.  Both have been on horses, but only in a corral.  They did great and never got scared!  I spend lots of time on horses growing up and I was so excited to do this with the kids. 

When we finished with the trail ride the kids played around camp the rest of the day.  Rock climbing was on that list.  So bummed, but I didn't get Carsyn climbing.  She was awesome at it too!

I think they went down the waterslide 100 times either with all 3 together or on their own.

  A cool story of something that happened tonight while getting everyone ready for bed...I had everyone shower because of our trip tomorrow.  The girls and I are in the bathroom blow drying our hair when a lady walked in a saw my shirt I had on.  (It was my 15 year old ragged shirt from my high school gymnastics team that I wear for jammies.)  She asked me if I was from Portage, MI and then proceeded to tell me that she was a teacher at that high school.  Come to find out, she was a teacher there when I went to school there.  I never had her for history, but my brother did.  Moments like this make you realize how small our world is.  We would love to have stayed here for a week, but we have to move on tomorrow.  Our longest drive yet, so we are off to bed a bit early!